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Veggie & vegan celebrities

Viva!'s active and high profile campaigns have attracted the support of many well known and well respected people. Here's a selection of interviews, campaign quotes, photos and in some cases, video footage, of our more famous members.

"A friend gave me Jonathan Safran Foer’s illuminating book, Eating Animals, to read. That really changed the way I looked at things, what food I was eating, where it came from, and what my money was supporting".

"It’s so obvious that animals have feelings and experience much the same emotions as we do – joy and happiness, fear and grief. You can see an animal working things out in its mind. It may not be exactly the same as our mind but it is equally complex. Anyone who has a dog knows this is true – that’s why I can’t and won’t eat meat. I am convinced that if the entire population had to watch the undercover videos that Viva! films, half of them would immediately go veggie".

I’m delighted to be part of such a successful and vegan organisation as Viva! The thought of not being a vegetarian is ridiculous, it’s just unthinkable, like going backwards. I won’t eat meat again for the same reason I gave it up in the first place – I don’t want to be part of all that suffering. Viva! is essential – to touch our conscience, to wake us up – please join and save lives."

"I remember cutting into a steak and for the first time in my stupid life, I realised I was cutting flesh. That was it! Now, I feel absolutely sick when I think of the things we do to animals and to anyone who claims we have the best welfare in the world, I would say: ‘Who says so?’ We can end cruelty to animals and Viva! is right there, with a V at its front, spearheading into the future. Go Viva!"

“I had a mixture of feelings when I first discovered what went on in factory farms. First of all there was rage that animals could be subjected to such suffering. It was followed by a sense of guilt that I had tacitly tolerated it for so long. Finally there was a sense of relief that I didn’t have to be involved with it at all – all I needed to do was stop eating meat."

"I've been vegetarian for over 30 years but only recently learned of the cruelty involved in producing dairy & eggs, which inspired me to go vegan. This would not have happened without the tireless campaigning & education from Viva!. Congratulations on 20 phenomenal years and here's to the next 20!"

“I am so proud to be a part of the Viva! team. They bring hope, inspiration, perseverance, passion and a huge ray of sunshine to the world of animal welfare. When the Viva! teeth bite, they bite hard and it's that unshakable determination and desire for change that has seen so many campaign successes over the years".

“I have been vegetarian for over ten years. It was something that happened gradually, I just started eating less and less meat, I think my body was telling me to. I didn’t go vegetarian because of the animals, but the longer I have avoided meat, the more disgusted I am by what happens to them. When I look at meat, I see the animal it came from.”

I'm totally against animal cruelty. I am vegetarian, so I don't have clothes, shoes or bags made from leather or suede or any animal products. I hate the thought of animals being killed just for our pleasure."

“My reasons for going vegan were always taste, cruelty and health – by which I mean it is revolting as a food and a concept; it involves the most absurd cruelty, an animal holocaust; and it’s bad for human health. These ideas have found root but it’s only recently that I’ve seen diet as an environmental issue. The enormous carbon footprint of a meat and dairy diet and the incredible waste of resources involved – truly, you could feed at least 10 vegans for every meat eater in the world.”
“Viva!’s environment campaign is so important – if you care about the planet you should be vegan. And it’s not so hard to do.”

Having been made aware of the need for it, I have never lost sight of my vegetarianism. Unquestioning brutality like slaughter and capital punishment does corrupt you and is a blot on the civilizing of society.

Interviews

Comprised of seven West Country indie-kids in their early twenties, a blur of hair clips and nu-rave colours, Los Campesinos! are the latest Next Big Thing. Often described as twee and compared to mid-nineties Teen C bands like Bis the signs may not be immediately promising.

Martin Shaw is one of Britain’s finest actors. He talks to Viva! founder Juliet Gellatley about being vegetarian, changing public and government apathy and why Big Brother should be booted off our screens

Viva! is delighted that our supporter, BBC children’s presenter and actress, Sarah Jane Honeywell has produced a powerful, haunting, moving and sexy video to help us save animals. This is a must-watch; see it here.